Chanting Practice

https://youtu.be/1o8uVfNjCYc I’ve had a question about how to handle doubt. Why does doubt come up and often remain persistent? We[...]

https://youtu.be/rcroFsOoRgk   We have learned a great deal about how the mind works since Nichiren’s time. I think it helps[...]

https://youtu.be/lV-NPz7FdsI Buddhism describes nine levels of consciousness, the ninth level being the level which science would describe as pure potentiality[...]

https://youtu.be/0YzG_odjaCc Today I’m going to discuss six areas for reflection when you don’t feel your prayers are being answered. Are[...]

https://youtu.be/XLYd4cdYR1k   “Drop the doubt. Begin to live as though your prayers have already been answered.” Daisaku Ikeda I have[...]

https://youtu.be/Cz2y_Zk79Po       Why Should I Chant for Someone Who Has Hurt Me? I have received comments from people[...]

https://youtu.be/_McNyrKZ9qw To download transcript, click here. Most of us have a fuzzy idea of what we want. But if we[...]

https://youtu.be/qGvY8QMITp0   I had had a question, “How can I stop dwelling on brooding, hurtful conversations with people from past[...]

To download the transcript, click here. I received a question this week “A while back I read in the World[...]

https://youtu.be/cbGB5TWktlA I have had a question this week. What is the difference between visualizing a goal as already accomplished and[...]

  https://youtu.be/rMFszFos0Sw I have received a number of questions in this last month which have had to do with changing[...]

“In case you haven’t noticed, you have a mental dialogue going on inside your head that never stops. It just[...]

https://youtube.com/embed/s_WXqwsqSMk If we are getting the results we want with our chanting, then we are mostly in alignment with what[...]

Before we discuss financial karma, let’s review what our relationship as humans is to the universe. As Daisaku Ikeda says,[...]

This week I had a question. “How do I deal with or overcome office politics? It seems I have bad[...]

 Is It Possible to be Too Attached to a Goal? Recently, I have had questions or comments from practitioners[...]

 Fear comes up when we have made a decision to expand our lives by focusing on a challenging goal.[...]

Have you ever chanted for a goal and it didn’t seem to be falling into place. In this vlog let’s[...]

   I’ve had a number of questions about setting goals for various types of problems. So today I want[...]

"I had a question this week: why do we need to chant in front of the Gohonzon if the law[...]

Can I change someone else by chanting? I have received this question over and over. Today I want to address[...]

 When you chant for a goal you hope to achieve it quickly, but obstacles or one sort or another[...]

 Nichiren Daishonin said, “Learn to master your mind and don’t let it master you.” What does mastering the mind[...]

 Today we are going to look  at ways we might be veering off the  path of faith and become[...]

 Some of you are suffering from illness and have asked me to discuss it.  So in this video we[...]

 In order to achieve the results we want, it’s important to understand how the mind works on a subtle[...]

 Many people feel as though they are chanting for a goal but they aren’t receiving answers. If this is[...]

Script download:  Have you Fallen into Fundamental Darkness 1       Download: Table of Contents latest According to Daisaku Ikeda in The[...]

Make a Decision1 We think we make decisions all the time. We say, “I am going to buy a house.[...]

Transcript Download: reservations Two practitioners, Beth and Barbara, were discussing getting goals. One commented that she had had experiences where[...]

   Trouble Can Nourish Growth Our lives are planted in the murky pond of everyday life, just like a[...]

 Transcript Upload: Difficult Family Karma One of the reasons we practice faith is to be able to change our[...]

 Transcript download: question This week we have a question. "I have been chanting for months now to find out[...]

 Transcript download: science and Religion “In this vlog I have been talking about how to use Buddhist philosophy and[...]

 Transcript download: Adversity When you have come up against adversity and go to an experienced practitioner for guidance, they[...]

 Transcript download: Forcing myself to Chant I have received questions from some of you who are concerned with not[...]

Transcript download:  Are You Trying to Avoid a Difficult Problem Have you heard this or thought it to yourself? “I[...]

 In this vlog, I am going to define human revolution. Then we’ll discuss ways you might be blocking yourself[...]

Many questions come up about chanting and to day we are going to discuss two of them. Transcript download: Is[...]

If you are chanting but not getting the results you want,  I am going to show you 4 ways to[...]

When we first start to chant we are taught to set a goal and chant for it. It seems as[...]

In this video, we discuss how to overcome feelings of being undeserving of your goal. Then talk about how to[...]

In this video you will learn how to recognize the signs your faith is slipping. Then we're going to cover[...]

In this vlog, we are going to be looking at the 8 warning signs that indicate you are chanting for[...]

I received a question this week.  "How do we get in our own way when chanting for a goal?" In[...]

This week we are going to look at a question,  "How would a Buddhist handle a desire for vengence?"  This[...]

Have you ever had the experience that even though you are chanting for a goal, you aren't moving forward? In[...]

Do you know the difference between making a determination and forcing through a goal? Since knowing this can make the[...]

In this video we are going to discuss three main issues, Why fears show up when chanting for a goal,[...]

Many people wonder why setting a determination is important when chanting for a goal.  In this post you'll learn why[...]

I hear stories where people are chanting for a goal but not getting what they really want.  Without even realizing[...]

Chanting is not Magic Some people talk about this practice as if it is magic. Chanting is not magic. Our[...]

Why is It Important to Master Negative Thinking? We are one with the Mystic Law, that creative, unlimited life force,[...]

Buddhism teaches philosophical concepts, which, when you really study them, I believe are teaching us universal laws, or how the[...]

We’re taught that our thoughts don‘t really matter unless we act on them. Nothing could be farther from the truth.[...]

I don’t think we recognize what we are at our core. We say we have a Buddha nature, which possesses[...]

Let’s say you’ve set a goal for a new house. You've begun to chant about it.  Do you find your[...]

As a Nichiren Buddhist, you hear that you should chant for what you want. But what if you have a[...]

Have you ever had a time when you felt unmotivated, study seemed like platitudes, doubts have shown up, and you[...]

Question: I’ve been chanting two hours a day about my goal but nothing seems to be happening. I don’t have[...]

When we become practitioners of Nichiren Buddhism, we take on the task of liberating ourselves from suffering. We also commit[...]

I received an email with this question. I try to focus properly but my mind goes to my fears. What[...]

Have you ever found that you set a goal, one that makes you stretch,  then found yourself forgetting to chant[...]

Setting a Goal When we envision a goal, chant about it, and embark on it, we don’t usually know what[...]

What Does Compassion In Action Look Like? If you want the universe to fully support you, then take the time[...]

Overwhelming Circumstances? What do you do if your life circumstances are so overwhelming that you can’t even formulate a goal?[...]

A member from Kansai  was discussing goals in a meeting. Everyone there knew that Kansai members have had tremendous victories[...]

In one meeting where members were discussing goals, a member from Kansai spoke up. "We don’t set goals like this[...]

We have to handle our minds a certain way when trying to bring a goal to fruition. In this post[...]

Not quite sure about how to accomplish human revolution in your own life? Let’s look at what human revolution is,[...]

Some people struggle with becoming consistent with their practice. This is not unusual, particularly when you are new. But, if[...]

There comes a time in our practice, probably after chanting for a number of years, when we are faced with[...]

When deadlocked, we are in a struggle between negative and positive forces. We don’t see the path forward: we feel[...]

When overwhelmed, too busy or in crisis, the temptation might be to chant less because of time constraints You think,”I’m[...]

When we chant about a challenge or an obstacle we are taking on negative forces which we must encounter on[...]

Believe it or not, chanting with faith produces more benefit than trying to control the process. What Does Control Look[...]

Complacency is one of the biggest obstacles to our Buddhist practice and it is a hard obstacle to recognize. It[...]

Certain behaviors lead to happiness, others to unhappiness. Buddhist writings have many suggestions on how to improve behavior, so we[...]

Katy had run a successful consulting business in the high-tech industry where her clients were all in another state. She[...]

I was really excited to see a Ted talk by psychiatrist Robert Waldinger on a 75 year long Harvard Study[...]

Have you ever had this experience? You are facing a problem so you set a goal and chant very hard[...]

When you are chanting for a goal, are you chanting with great intensity trying to force it to happen? Or[...]

When chanting for a goal, we often focus on the obstacles to reaching it. This happens because we are worried[...]

When we are young we often think that we are not as good as other people because of inclinations or[...]

The immediate answer would be that we want to achieve this or that specific goal. But looking at the immediate[...]

You can learn how to navigate agitated feelings, when blindsided by life, to maintain stability in the face of shocks.[...]

Sometimes we may have set a goal which might limit us, but we don’t know that. While we  keep our[...]

When we run up against a mental limit we think we are going to do something, and then we don’t[...]

When confronting a difficult obstacle, we may have doubts that we can ever overcome it. “Can I really overcome this[...]

Are you in the position of putting everything else in life before your practice? We’re trained to do that in[...]

It is said that with Nichiren Buddhism no prayer goes unanswered. But this doesn’t mean every prayer will be answered[...]

Over the last few posts, I’ve discussed how to achieve goals successfully. But what if you don’t know what your[...]

Many people suffer from depression. Depression can leach all joy out of life, leaving you without zest. One of the[...]

Chanting Alone is Not Enough In my last post we discussed how important it is to take action on ideas[...]

To achieve a goal successfully requires you to chant about it and then take action. When you take a  step[...]

Are You Chanting with Mixed Feelings? If you are struggling to surmount an obstacle, little adjustments in the way you[...]

When you set a goal and chant about it, action will be required to bring it about. Chanting Isn’t Magic[...]

President Ikeda, author of many books on Buddhism and the leader of the Nichiren Buddhist movement for 60 years, points[...]

I’m going to discuss something which you may never have considered as a powerful way to realize a goal. I[...]

Do you have a problem which seems unsolvable? Have you felt as though you’ve been beating your head against a[...]

When first starting to chant, most people are excited and hopeful.  This was what they were looking for, something to[...]

Everyone faces problems and obstacles. So what do you do when a tough problem, arises? What’s Your Reaction? Do you[...]

Can a religion that doesn’t have rules and commandments keep practitioners on the straight and narrow? The purpose of Buddhism[...]

Problems, Suffering or Opportunity Experienced Nichiren Buddhist practitioners tell you that when you are confronting a problem, you have an[...]

Your life will become much easier when you start chanting about your problems and challenges. I can’t tell you exactly [...]

Do you believe you can direct your life as you wish it, or do you secretly believe that outside forces[...]

In the last post I discussed the Ten Worlds so you could have an overview of the different internal life[...]

Last week we talked about ten conditions of life, which we experience each day. These are important to us because[...]

Have fears kept you from moving forward in some area of your life? This can happen to anyone. In this[...]

Have you ever asked yourself, why practice a religion? Does your religion address your everyday problems? In this post I’m[...]

Do you know how to regain control of your life when overwhelmed by negative circumstances? Sometimes life seems too much[...]

Establishing a consistent daily chanting practice is the key to achieving the benefits of practice. It is never easy to[...]

What is karma? Karma represents tendencies present in the inner, unconscious realm of life. They have been created through one's[...]

Develop a Mind of Faith When you chant, Nam-Myoho-Renge-Kyo, you connect with the Buddha Nature within you. A mind of[...]

What is Karma? We all are born with karma. The popular belief about it is that karma is negative but[...]

What is Compassion? Compassion, according to Buddhism, embodies altruistic action that tries to relieve people from suffering and bring them[...]

How Do We Want To Live? It seems as though profit has become the dominant value in the U.S. to[...]

Why So Much Anxiety? Why is there so much anxiety in the world today? Technology has transformed every aspect of[...]

The Question Exactly, what is faith and how do you find it? In Nichiren Buddhism, faith doesn't just appear from[...]

Goals Develop Faith When you are new, you may be encouraged to chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo  for goal that is a stretch,[...]

Most of us admire marathoners, even if we don't run ourselves. We love them because they are such a triumph[...]

Learning to Trust the Wisdom Within    Post#2 By Margaret Blaine, The Practical Buddhist   Usually when you start to practice[...]

Mastering Your Mind: Post #1 I have been practicing Nichiren Buddhism for eighteen years. During that time I have heard[...]

Thoughts are Potential Realities Many people think our thoughts are just thoughts, fleeting energies that don't do anything.This is far[...]

Some people think that the idea of chanting is woo-woo and won't try it.  In my experience it is the[...]

Do you have an obstacle, or more than one, which is keeping you from moving forward in your life? We[...]

Some people have a problem with anger. It tends to come up at inappropriate times or simmers underneath the surface[...]

I have said that Nichiren Buddhism is practical and I'd like to give you an example of what I mean.[...]

In the last post we discussed the fact that when you access your Buddha nature on a regular basis you[...]

Nichiren Buddhism is practical. It exists to allow you to turn your life from negativity and unhappiness to redirect it[...]